'It's so enjoyable' - Richard Phillips on broodmare Giovanna's purple patch

When Cheltenham Festival-winning trainer Richard Phillips decided to retain Giovanna instead of pinhook her as a yearling, he could not have dared hope just how well the daughter of Orpen would repay that move.

Owned in a partnership made up of Phillips and two good friends in Sue Welch and Brian Duckett, Giovanna proved not only a classy performer on the track but also in the paddocks as the dam of three recent winners, including quickfire hat-trick hero Pinnacle Peak.

The Martin Keighley-trained son of Passing Glance followed up last week's Worcester success with an even more dominant victory at Southwell on Tuesday, accompanied to the track by none other than his year older half-brother Back On The Lash, who is his stablemate as well as calming travel companion.

The pair's Kayf Tara half-sister Kazontherazz - originally picked up by Gerry Hogan for just £1,800 at the 2017 Goffs UK January Sale - had also done her bit for family pride when winning on the same Worcester card as Pinnacle Peak. She is also trained by Keighley, a near-neighbour of Phillips in the Cotswolds.

Phillips, who is also in a rich vein of form with Flat and National Hunt winners over the last fortnight, said on Friday: "Giovanna was such a popular mare, she had great owners and was so tough. It's lovely she's passed on that toughness."

He continued: "Sue does all the work, she's a great friend and we have great fun breeding them. I trained Giovanna, who was an absolute star for us and I bought her in the days when I used to pinhook and was an assistant trainer to Henry Candy.

"It was something that always interested me and I've always loved the breeding side. I bought Giovanna for 4,800gns as a foal from Crandon Park Stud and I then took her as a yearling to the sales, but I couldn't get the 10,000gns I wanted given she was a nice looking individual."

Ultimately Phillips decided to retain Giovanna to race, despite the interested presence of two leading trainers.

He revealed: "Michael Bell and Andrew Balding were looking around trying to get her for 9,000gns, but I decided to keep her. She was quite backward at two but we got her going at three and then at four she won a couple of bumpers."

But for a wolf tooth - an unnecessary but sometimes problematic tooth that can emerge in a horse - Giovanna, who was to win seven of her 38 starts with several good placed efforts too, would have almost certainly achieved black type.

Phillips reflected: "She should have been Listed placed in the Aintree festival bumper but she had a wolf tooth coming through and just hung in the straight and got short-headed out of third.

"She won two bumpers and five over hurdles and was as tough as teak but got a tendon injury, so she went to the sales. Sue Welch said she was interested in buying her and would I go in with her. I said yes so we bought her for £700 at the Tattersalls Ascot Sale."

Giovanna's first foal, a filly by Kayf Tara, has been kept by Phillips to breed from and is currently carrying to Passing Glance having sadly lost her first foal last year.

He explained: "I've got the first foal, an unraced filly by Kayf Tara, and we're breeding from her. She's in foal to Passing Glance, unfortunately her first foal died last year, but hopefully all will be well this time.

"We sell them as foals as I've got only a leg in them but I love the mare and we get so much enjoyment out of seeing her offspring."

The now happily retired Giovanna has since produced Back On The Lash, a six-time winning son of Malinas, along with Pinnacle Peak and Kazontherazz, while her Blue Bresil foal sold to Ireland.

Phillips added: "Michael Bowen bought her second foal, Back On The Lash, at the 2015 DBS January Sale, and he's now owned by Mark Boothright, who was another involved with Giovanna.

"That horse has also turned out to be all right, while Pinnacle Peak - also owned by Mark - is her third foal and seems to be progressing with a step up in trip.

"Kazontherazz is of course a full-sister to my mare and she's won over hurdles having been placed in some bumpers, while we had a Blue Bresil sell to a nice man in Ireland."

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